Troopers ½
by Lady Koneko Shin-Chan
Summary: The Samurai Troopers and Co. visit Touma's cousin in Nermia, and make a surprising (and shockingly disturbing) discovery.
1. Hello Nermia

Troopers ½ - Chapter 1   


Hello minna, welcome to my Samurai troopers Ranma ½ It takes place after the events from Kikoutei Dentsu OAV. The Troopers are sixteen to seventeen years old in this story line and they still have their personal armor, but they have learned a few other tricks as well . . . 

As usual, most every character belongs to someone else. Yoroiden Samurai Troopers belongs to Sunrise Inc. and Ranma ½ belongs to Viz Communications, Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Kitty Films and Pony Canyon. I am not sure who holds the rights to YST in America at the moment. No harm is intended in my usage of these properties. Arial, Shan Lai and anyone else not involved with the previously mentioned anime titles belongs to yours truly, Shin-Chan.   
  
TROOPERS ½   
CHAPTER 1: HELLO, NERMIA   
by SHIN-CHAN   
  
  
*Prologue* 

Off in the remote wilds of China, is a place shrouded in mystery. Nestled in the high reaches of the Tsinghai region a small valley exists. Within this valley is a collection of small springs. For countless centuries, these harmless looking springs have been surrounded in myth.

It has been said that an ancient curse was laid upon these springs by unknown Gods to protect a sacred site. It has also been said that a sorcerer of unknown origin placed a death curse here in the distant past. No writing exists to prove or disprove either story.

It is known, however, that over the centuries the legend of these cursed springs has endured. Many have come to this valley for numerous reasons, and all have discovered the validity of the legend for themselves.

Now, in this modern age of man and machine, magic and myth seem to have no place in the world. Legends are no longer believed in, and curses scorned.

In the far distant land of America, a rich individual with unknown motives has come across an ancient document concerning this cursed valley of springs, Jhusenkyo. Unlike his contemporaries, he believes. This is the beginning of our story.

  
*Chapter 1*   


The two men cautiously stepped away from the small spring. Unlike the rest in the valley, this spring had no bamboo poles protruding from it. Instead, it was marked off with an old rope with white paper streamers hanging from it.

With a triumphant smile, one of the two men held up a quart sized plastic bottle of water. He was a rather tall man, skinny with short lank black hair and an olive complexion. "We did it Sam, we did it!"

The second man, identified as Sam, nodded his agreement as he watched the first man push a stopper in the bottle and put it into his grungy backpack. Sam was a short man, on the chubby side with long straight blond hair. "A cool two mil. And all for a stupid bottle of spring water. What will those rich snobs think up next?"

The two men stepped over the rope -neither had any idea what it was there for- and started for the far side of the valley. As they wove their way through the many springs, the first man, his name is Rich, looked back the way they came.

"I just don't understand rich people. What is so important about water from that spring? Why would anyone pay so much for it?"

"I dunno. Maybe it keeps you from aging or something."

Rich frowned at Sam. "The fountain of youth is supposed to be in Florida, idiot. But," he looked around the valley. "Why that spring in particular? I mean, look around, there are dozens of springs in this valley. Wouldn't water from any of them work just as well? They are all fed by the same underground water source."

"I have a better question." Sam stopped and looked at one of the springs. "Why stick all of these stupid poles in them?"

Rich cuffed Sam. "Weren't you listening? The Boss said this was some sort of martial arts training ground."

"Martial arts? Like that kung fu stuff on late nite TV?"

"That's right." Rich turned away and started to make his way through the springs. Sam bent over and peered into the spring. "Come on, lets get out of here. The sooner we get this bottle to the Boss in Japan, the sooner we go to the Riviera." His eyes glazed over at the thought. "Busty girls with no tops on . . . " what a pleasant thought.

Sam looked up and saw his partner leaving him behind. "Hey!" he whined. "Wait for me!" Sam started after Rich. He had just set his foot down when he heard a sudden squeak from the region of his feet. Looking down, he saw some small brown furry animal of the rodent family run across his foot.

With a startled yell, he jumped backwards, away from the innocent animal; who had stopped running and was looking at him with vast curiosity. Sam continued stepping backwards, and then the ground disappeared. With another startled yell, this one more panicked than the first, Sam fell into one of the springs.

Rich had turned around at Sam's first yell, and had started to laugh at him when he saw the cause. The sight of a grown man running from a mouse was highly amusing. But when he saw Sam fall backwards into the spring, he had stopped.

"Moron," he muttered and walked to the spring. "Now we are going to miss our bus while you get dry cloths." He bent down and peered into the spring. Now, where was Sam? "Hey Sam, you okay?"

A dark form swam to the surface of the spring. Frowning, Rich bent over further. Whatever was surfacing looked a lot smaller than Sam.

The dark form surface and Rich jumped back. "AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"   
  
* * * * * * *   
One week later. Shinjuku Tokyo. Saturday afternoon.   
* * * * * * *   


Shin and Shu were sitting in the subway station waiting for the rest of their friends to show. Due to a major explosion in the chemistry lab two days earlier, cause currently unknown, and the resulting smoke and fire damage, they were out of school for the next week.

"Ya know," Shu leaned back with his arms behind his head and watched all the busy people running back and forth. "I still feel a bit uneasy down here. I keep thinking that one of those stupid trains is going to attack me."

Shin laughed softly at his friend's discomfort. "Not unless Arago is controlling it. And he and the Evil Empire are long gone." Shu did not look comforted. "Besides, this is the fastest way to Nermia."

"Yeah," Shu sighed and reached out to snag one of the duffel bags. Pulling it toward him, he shot Shin an amused look. "I'm kinda surprised Touma's uncle invited us along. Not many people would want six total strangers crashing at their place, even if they are their only nephew's friends."

Shin snorted as he watched Shu dig through the duffel bag and pull out a packet of mini donuts. "I am surprised he even mentioned the invitation to us, considering how you reacted when his mother came to visit that first time. You went way overboard."

"Come on, I wasn't that bad. Besides, his mom is cool."

"Stuffing your face as usual, eh Shu?"

"Shan Lai," Shu bounced up and smiled at her, then looked behind her. "Where is everyone else?"

The Chinese girl reached over and swiped a donut. She was the only person who could get away with it without censure. "Coming. Touma is making a phone call . . . "

"And Seiji is asking a girl for her phone number. He'll be here in a couple of minutes." Ryo dumped his duffel bag in the growing pile next to Shin.

"And Arial? Where is she?"

Shan Lai swallowed her donut and reached for another; then she turned to Shin. "She said she was running a bit late. Not sure why, sometimes getting a straight answer out of that girl is impossible."

"Uhmm, well . . . " Shin began. He was interrupted by the arrival of Seiji and Touma.

Shu eyed the bags Seiji was carrying. "Seiji, how long do you plan on being gone?" He had brought one bag, all the cloths he needed were in it. Shin and Ryo had also brought one bag. Shan Lai and Touma had each brought two. Touma's second bag held his some of his schoolbooks and laptop, and Shan Lai's held important girl stuff. Seiji was carrying three sizable bags and his bokkan case.

Seiji carefully sat his bags down, and his eyes roved over Shu, taking in the faded jeans and the T-shirt he was wearing. "Unlike some people," he gave his blond head a derisive toss, sending his wavy blond hair flying, "I cannot get along for a week in a pair of jeans and a couple of shirts."

"Beats being a stuffed shirt," Shu muttered under his breath. Shin heard him and gave him a sharp jab in the ribs.

Ryo glanced over at Shu. "Did you say something?" Shu was holding a hand over his ribs and was glaring at Shin in a threatening manner.

"No," he mumbled.

While Shu wasn't paying attention, Touma quickly snagged a donut from Shu. "Arial isn't here yet, is she?" Shu rolled his eyes. "How long are we going to wait for her?"

Shin glanced down at his watch, and then at the station's clock. "Well Touma, if the train is on time, we can wait for five minutes. All of you were cutting it close."

"What if she doesn't make it on time?"

Sighing, Shin propped an elbow on the armrest. "I'll stay and wait for her, the rest of you should go on ahead. It is the Tendo Training Hall, right?"

Touma nodded.

They sat around for five minutes. No sign of Arial. All of them with the exception of Shin stood up and began to gather their bags.

"We~el Shin," Shu smirked, "see ya there."

"Gomen!" A voice called out over the noise of the crowd. They turned and saw a petite blond run up to them. "Last minute chores at the shrine. I thought I would never get out of there!"

"You got her just in time," Seiji casually buffed his fingernails against his shirt and smiled innocently. "You were so late, we were going to leave you behind."

"Sha right," she said, glaring at him. "You are such a jerk sometimes Seiji." She turned to Touma. "Does he have to come along?" she whined.

"Will you two knock it off?! We don't have time for this." Shin shook his head in exasperation and walked over and took Arial's bag from her. "Quit picking on Arial. Just because she doesn't treat you the same as all the other girls you know . . . "

"Hey!" Seiji protested as the rest of the gang started to laugh. "It is not like she counts any," Arial's face turned an angry shade of red and she started to approach Seiji, "I mean," he quickly held up his hands to ward her off, "you aren't like other girls . . . " he sputtered. The others hid their smiles as Arial glared at her cousin.

"Stop while you are ahead Seiji," Ryo told him, looking up from the manga he was stuffing in his bag. "At this rate, we are going to miss the train while Arial kills you."

Arial stopped and adopted an injured look. "Seiji," she sniffled, "you are so mean!" Tears started to roll down her cheeks. Seiji rolled his eyes.

"Arial," Shin placed his hand on her shoulder. "We really don't have time for this. We are going to miss the train."

Like magic, Arial stopped crying. "Okay," she said on a sigh. She turned to Seiji, smirking nastily. "We can continue this conversation later. Just because you are my cousin doesn't mean I have to take that from you." Her eyes narrowed, and then she smiled. "One of these days, some girl is going to get you good, and I hope I'm there to see it."

"What? A girl getting even with Playboy Date?" Shu placed a hand over his heart in shock. Shan Lai smothered a laugh with her hand. Ryo lifted up the manga so no one could see the look on his face.

"Are you guys finished?" Touma asked them testily. He grabbed his bags and started toward the platform without waiting to see if they were following. After a quick look at his rapidly receding back, the rest of them grabbed their bags and followed.   
  
* * * * * * *   


The seven teenagers stood on the train platform at the Nermia station, the rush of the crowd passing them as they looked around.

"So Touma, was someone going to meet us here?"

Nodding, Touma looked around. He was busily scanning the milling crowd for a familiar face. "That is what Uncle told me. My cousin Akane and her fiancé were supposed to meet us here."

Arial was standing next to Shin. "So, this is Nermia," she said to him in a low voice. "Everything looks normal. Too normal," she finished in a low, dark tone.

Shin gave Arial an indulging smile as he shook his head lightly. "So you told us earlier Ari; you listen to rumors and gossip way too much. Nermia is probably no different from Shinjuku."

She arched an eyebrow. "Now, refresh my memory," she said in a dry voice, deciding to ignore the bit about listening to rumors and gossip, "Tell me once again what happened there during the last two years. Does the word 'demons' ring any bells?"

Shin tapped her on the nose. "That was uncalled for," he said lightly. "You are being a real brat today." In response Arial smiled and then stuck her tongue out at him. "Nyaaa."

Unnoticed by them two Americans, one tall and skinny, the other short and chubby exited the train behind them and disappeared in the crowd.

"Hentai!"

"Kawaiikune!"

Everyone on the platform turned toward the upraised voices. A young couple that had been approaching the platform had started to yell insults at each other. While the rest of the group was staring at the two teenagers, several with a decidedly slack-jawed expression, Touma smiled and picked up his bags. "Well, there they are, let's go." He once again walked off, this time toward the couple that was now screaming insults at each other, without looking to see if he was being followed.

"He is not serious, is he?" Ryo turned to Seiji. "He is joking, right?"

Seiji shook his head. "Touma? Joking? No, he is serious. That is Akane." Seiji looked at the arguing couple again. He could not believe they were still at it. Akane and Ranma had been engaged for months now, not that one would notice from the way they acted. "This is going to be a long week," he sighed with feeling. The rest of them nodded.

Touma smiled to himself as he approached his cousin and her fiancé. They did look good together, he thought, and he personally couldn't believe that two people could fight like they did, unless they really cared for each other. Why else get so riled up? After all, Shu and Shan Lai argued all of the time. Now if only they could learn to keep the volume down.

"Konnichiwa Akane, Ranma. Thank you for meeting us."

Akane and Ranma stopped arguing, much to the relief of the other people on the platform. "Konnichiwa Cousin Touma," Akane said smiling. "I am so glad you could come for a longer visit than last time."

He nodded. "And it was so kind of Uncle to invite my friends as well. It was unexpected."

Akane laughed weakly and shot Ranma a nervous glance. "N-no problem. It is always nice to have people visit. Right Ranma?"

"Yeah right," Ranma muttered silently under his breath. Seven people, staying at the dojo, for one week. He brought a hand to his head. How was he going to keep them from finding out?

Akane and Ranma watched as a mixed group of teenagers approached them. They only recognized one of the teenagers.

"It is a pleasure to see you again, Akane." Seiji gently took her hand and kissed it. Akane blushed and placed a hand on her cheek in embarrassment.

Ranma glared at Seiji and clenched his jaw. Why that . . . Who does he think he is?

Touma blinked once, and then brought a hand up to his forehead. Oh just great! Just what was Seiji thinking?

"Seiji!" Arial placed her hands on her hips and glared at her cousin. She hadn't seen that sly look he had directed toward her before he kissed Akane. "She is engaged! And right in front of her fiancé. How could you?!"

"Hey Akane," Ranma whispered in her ear as Seiji valiantly defended himself to Arial, "didn't you once tell me a girl could always avoid unwanted kisses?"

"Now that was an interesting move," Shu commented to Shin in a dry voice. "I have never seen anyone get elbowed in the head like that before."   
  
* * * * * * *   


"How much further?" Shu whined.

"Shu! Stop being such a baby." Shan Lai rolled her eyes. "A little walking won't hurt you."

"That is right," Seiji stated. "But just out of curiosity," he looked up at Ranma, who was walking on the fence with his hands in his pockets. "Just how much further is it?"

Ranma glanced at all the luggage that Seiji was carrying. He didn't seem to be having carrying them though. "Not much further, just a couple more blocks."

Seiji nodded, and readjusted his shoulder bag. The last time he visited the Tendo Training Hall, he and Touma had traveled by bus, and they had brought no luggage.

Behind Shu and Shan Lai, Shin and Arial were talking.

"You know Shin," Arial was looking curiously around the quiet streets of Nermia, as she had been ever since they left the train station. "Maybe you are right after all."

He cocked an enquiring eyebrow at her. "Right about what?"

"Nermia. It seems like a quiet town."

"See, I told you. Now if you would just stop listening to rumors . . . "

"SAOTOME!"

Shin stopped speaking and looked away from Arial. Everyone stopped and looked ahead.

"Oh great!" Ranma muttered and jumped off of the fence. This was just what he needed today.

The Troopers and the two girls looked from Ranma and Akane to the rapidly approaching young man. No explanation was forthcoming.

Arial studied the young man. He was wearing a blue practice gi and was holding a bokkan above his head as he approached. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully and she slid a glance over to Shin. Maybe she had spoken too soon.

"Fall, you lecherous cur!"

The strange young man attacked Ranma. Without seeming to be overly concerned by this unprovoked attack, -actually he looked a bit board- Ranma easily jumped up and over him, twisting in midair so he was facing the young man's back. As he landed, he kicked the man in the back, sending him flying forward and into the Troopers. He had kept his hands in his pockets the entire time. They immediately scattered, and the young man hit the sidewalk, his bokkan flying from his hand and skidding across the sidewalk to rest against the wall that Ranma had been walking on.

"Uh, Akane," Touma cautiously slid over to his cousin. "Who is that?"

She gave a resigned sigh. "Upperclassman Kunou."

"Why you . . . " Kunou growled and started to get to his feet. "You shall pay for this . . . " He looked up, and saw the most beautiful pair of startled purple eyes he had ever seen gazing down at him. Slowly, with newly reestablished dignity, he got to his feet.

"Pardon me," he said to the beautiful young girl. She had to be new; he had never seen her about before, and he could tell that she was struck with awe, no doubt caused by his exalted presence. "Please excuse my untoward entrance."

Before a shocked Arial was aware of what he was doing. Kunou took one of her hands in his. "I am Kunou Tatewaki, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High." He bent down to kiss her hand.

"Excuse me," a cold voice interrupted. Kunou's bokkan suddenly came between Kunou and Arial. "And what do you think you are doing?"

Kunou straightened up and glared at the young man holding his bokkan. "I am apologizing to this delicate flower for my rude entrance. Who are you to interfere?"

Shin glared at the handsome young man with cold eyes. "I am Mouri Shin, Arial's fiancé. Now," he brought the bokkan down so it tapped Kunou's wrist with each of his next words. "Let. Her. Go."

"Hmph," Kunou released Arial's wrist and she scooted behind Shin. This Kunou guy gave her the creeps. Kunou casually raised his hand and brushed the bangs out of his face. " Mouri. Of the noble house of Mouri?" he inquired. Shin nodded his head. "It is unseemly for two gentlemen such as ourselves to brawl in the streets for the hand of a lady." He turned. "We shall see each other again." Shin lowered the bokkan in surprise. What was this guy talking about?

Kunou walked past Ranma. "This is not over Saotome," he growled.

"Does this happen often?" Ryo asked as they watched Kunou walk down the street.

"Yes."

"Idiot!" Ranma said to himself, not quite sure who he was referring to, and then turned to Shin. "That was a dangerous thing to do. Kunou, believe it or not, is a skilled martial artist."

"Really?" Shin juggled the bokkan from hand to hand, showing Ranma and Akane that he at least knew how to handle swords. "I'm not too bad at the martial arts myself." The rest of the Troopers, Arial and Shan Lai all grinned. "Might have been interesting."

Ranma shook his head. Poor guy, he really had no idea how good the idiot was. Then Ranma recalled something Shin had said. "Uh, you two," his finger waved from Shin to Arial, "are engaged?"

Shin turned and placed the bokkan on a nearby mailbox. He was not going to carry it around with him. And if that idiot Kunou wanted it, he should have taken it with him. "Yes, we're engaged." Ranma was giving him an incredulous look. Shin glanced over at Akane. She was wearing a similar look.

"Ah, something wrong with that?" Both Ranma and Akane shook their heads.

They continued on their way to the Tendo Training hall, with Akane and Ranma shooting Shin and Arial quick, disbelieving looks. As they turned the corner, Arial happened to look back down the way they had come. The mailbox that Shin had placed the bokkan on was walking away. She blinked a couple of times -she had to be seeing things- and looked again. It was definitely moving. As she watched in wide-eyed amazement, the mailbox went around the far corner.

"Arial, what is the matter?"

She looked at her cousin and Shin. Both of them had stopped once they realized that she was no longer walking with them. "I don't suppose the two of you would believe I just saw a mailbox walk off?" she asked hopefully.

Seiji blinked at her, glanced over at Shin, and then walked over to her so he could place the back of his hand on her forehead. A moment later he placed his hand on her cheek. "No temperature Shin." Seiji peered closely at her. She had been acting a bit touchy all day; maybe she was coming down with something. "Arial, are you feeling okay?"

"I'm serious!" she replied, stomping one foot on the ground.

"Are you three going to stand there all day?"

"We are coming Shu!" Shin put an arm around Arial. "Come on, we should get you inside."

Arial thought about protesting, but quickly figured out it would do no good. She leaned her head against him. Besides, she liked being this close to Shin. Why argue?

"What is the matter?" Shan Lai asked Seiji when they caught up with the rest of the crowd.

"I think Arial has been out in the sun too much or something. She is starting to see things."

"Like what?" Shu asked.

"She said she saw a mailbox walk off. Now isn't that the silliest thing you have ever heard?"

No one noticed Akane stiffen up slightly in front of them.

"Yep, that is silly." Shu cocked his head. "I wonder, maybe she hasn't eaten today. Don't people start to see things if they don't eat?"

"That is if they are starving themselves Shu. I don't think that counts." Shan Lai saw something move out of the corner of her eye, something coming toward them. She turned, and saw a cute little lavender point Siamese cat approach. "Oh look at that cute kitty."

Akane froze. No, it couldn't be. She promised Ranma . . . no wait, think about whom this is; of course she would . . . 

"Meow!" The Siamese jumped up and grabbed Ranma's arm (he was back on the fence again) before he knew she was there.

"CAAAT!!!!!" Ranma waved his arm frantically, trying to dislodge the cat.

The cat snuggled against his arm and meowed happily.

"Shampoo!" Akane growled. Ryo and Touma both gave her puzzled looks.

A moment later the commotion was all over. After having jumped off the fence and running around in a blind panic for several minutes, causing everyone to once again scatter, Ranma ran head on into a telephone pole, knocking himself out. While the cat sat on his chest, staring at him in a concerned manner one does not often see on a cat, Akane walked over and grabbed her by the scruff of the neck.

"You promised you would behave!" The cat hissed at Akane, and a moment later Akane dropkicked it into the stratosphere.

As the rest of them tried to adjust to what they had just seen (with the exception of Touma, who just seemed to be taking it in stride) Akane bent over the prone form of Ranma. "Ranma no baka," she whispered to herself.

"Uh, let me guess." Everyone turned to look at Shu. "Ranma is afraid of cats, isn't he?"

Arial rolled her eyes. That was obvious to the dumbest person in the world. "Oh no Shu, really? I would never have guessed."

"Shin, Seiji, Arial is picking on me!"

"Leave her alone Shu, she is not feeling well." Shu glanced at Arial. Despite what Seiji had been saying, she looked fine to him.

"Honestly Shu," Shan Lai shook her head. "You are such a child some times."

While Shu was trying to think of a suitable remark to make to his girlfriend, Ryo and Touma went to help Akane, who had Ranma's limp body draped over hers.

"Here Akane, let us carry him."

She nodded and her cousin and Ryo propped Ranma up between them. "Lets get him home."   
  
* * * * * * *   


Arial and Shan Lai were in the room that Akane's elder sister Kasumi had shown them, unpacking and talking.

"Shan, don't you think that things are, you know," she waved a hand in the air, "a bit . . . not right here?"

Shan Lai sighed. She had heard Arial's talk about Nermia earlier, on the train and on the way to the dojo, and did not want to go through it again. "Arial listen, there is nothing strange about Nermia, okay. It is a normal town."

Arial gazed at her friend, eyebrows arched, a silent message in her eyes.

"Okay, okay," Shan Lai broke down in defeat. "I'll admit it, that Kunou guy was strange, and maybe Akane kind of overreacted about the cat. But everything else is normal."

Shaking her head, Arial sat on her bed. "No, it is not. The way that everyone is acting, it is as though they are trying to make us think everything is normal, but they are trying too hard. Did you see Akane's face when that old lady nearly splashed Ranma after he came to? I thought she was going to have a stroke."

"Now that you mention it," Shan Lai sat on her bed as well and crossed her legs. She started to tap a finger thoughtfully on her cheek. "Ranma kind of overreacted as well. From the way he was acting, you would think she was trying to throw acid on him. Think he is afraid of water as well as cats?"

"Dunno. And did you see the looks on Saotome-san and Tendo-san's faces when we came in? And why was Saotome-san dripping wet in the family room?" Arial threw herself backwards on the bed. "I do not by that 'fell-in-fishpond' excuse at all. There was no sign that he dripped water across the floor."

"Oh Arial, you are reading too much into things. A couple strange incidents, and you act as if Nermia was the center of weird happenings."

"No, that is Shinjuku." She sighed, falling back onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. "It is just that, all my instincts are screaming at me. 'Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!' they say. I can't ignore it."

After a moment of thinking about what Arial had just told her, Shan Lai shook her head. "Just relax Arial, I'm sure it is nothing. Your nerves are probably strung out from having to watch Seiji act like an idiot. I can't believe how he is flirting with Touma's cousins, especially Akane. It is enough to get on anyone's nerves." Shan Lai lay down on the bed and propped her cheek on her hand. "Let me tell you, some girl needs to land a palm against his cheek, hard. I don't see why none of the guys have done anything about him. He is getting impossible!"

Arial rolled over and propped herself up so she could see Shan Lai. "Ah, it is not any big deal."

Shan Lai jumped up. "What!"

"It's not like he means anything by it. It is kind of like a hobby, like Shin's cooking and Touma's reading. Something to occupy the time." For a moment, her eyes darkened. And it is a great way to keep girls from getting too close. Seiji . . . 

"That is not the impression I got at the station earlier." Arial quickly blinked, -coming back to reality- her momentarily somber mood lifting.

"Oh, that. I like teasing him, that's all. And he liked to tease me back. He does have a superior attitude; I'll be the first to admit to that. He is the future head of the Date family and all. It needs knocking down every now and then, and as his cousin, it is my duty and pleasure to do so."

At that, Shan Lai flopped onto her back and began to laugh. "Oh Arial, Shin is so right. You are a brat!"

Arial giggled softly, troubles forgotten for a brief moment. "And proud of it."   
  
(To be continued . . . )


	2. Arial's Interlude

Arial's Interlude 

Konnichi wa. 

This is the beginning of the Troopers ½ interludes storyline. The Interludes come irregularly, and touch on happenings that just won't fit in the regular storyline. All are first person, and the perspective will vary according to chapter. Also, a new disclaimer, I am introducing new characters that do not belong to me. For future reference, my Dragon Gods are modeled after the four Dragon Kings from the anime Sohryuden, released by U.S. Manga Corp. No harm intended.   
On with the story.   
Shin-Chan   


TROOPERS ½ INTERLUDE - ARIAL'S STORY   
by Shin-Chan   


Dear Journal, 

Konnichi wa! My name is Kairyu Arial, and I just had to write this down. I have been thinking on and off for a while now that it would be a good idea to start a journal, to document what has been happening in my life, I just have never got around to it. Never really had the time. But things have been happening lately, important things that I just have to write down, so . . . first off, on this very first entry, I'll tell a bit about myself and attempt to get everything sort of up to date. 

Well . . . lets see, how do I start? I appear to be a normal teenage girl. I'm rather on the short side with a nice figure and I have long, and I do mean long, blond hair and deep purple eyes. I am fifteen years old, going onto sixteen. Normal enough, right? 

WRONG! There are things about me that are not normal in the slightest bit. In reality, I am an Avatar of the Dragon Gods and a protector of the Earth. This is not a cushy job at all; let me tell you. Back when I was twelve, I was given a magic staff, the Staff of Four Colors and a cool set of armor, the Golden Dragon Armor by the four Dragon Gods of Chinese mythology. 

With these, I protect this plain of reality from anything that threatens it, may it be a mortal threat, or demonic in nature. I also directly serve my Gods, in any capacity they wish. What a fun job for a teenager. 

The next important occurrence in my life, after becoming an Avatar, was meeting my future husband. Yes Journal, not even sixteen, and I am engaged. Shocked? Well, this is how that all occurred. 

Around ten months ago, my parents arranged for me to meet my betrothed. Here in Japan, it is not unusual for parents to pick out whom their children are going to marry at birth. Well, in the more prominent families, that is. My father and his (oh, his name is Shin by the way) were great friends in school. When they both got married, they thought it would be great if their children got married in the future, so they swore that if they had children of the right sex who were compatible in age, they would get married. And then they settled a ton of money on the future wedding. Talk about pressure. 

I was so nervous, I do admit. They sprang this on me with no prior warning. I had never even heard of this arrangement before, for cryin' out loud! You see; Shin's father had died when he was very young. The Mouri family lives in a different prefecture than my family, on the other end of Japan if you want to get technical about it, and after his father's death our two families didn't see as much of each other as they use to, so I never had the opportunity to meet him before. So here I was, about to meet the man I would one day marry and spend the rest of my life with. What was he going to be like? Was he cute? Would I like him? Would he like me? Did we have anything in common? What if we hated each other's guts? All I knew was his name and that he was a year older than me. And that he was born in March. Not much to go on. 

I spent the entire week before the planned meeting date looking up books on western astrology. It was the only thing I could think of as my parents neglected to tell me his blood type. Shin is a Pisces, a water sign. If he followed his zodiac sign that meant he would be a sensitive, peaceful, caring person who was rather emotional and would have a tendency to be moody. Okay. 

On the other hand, I am a Gemini, an air sign. According to the books I read, Geminis are flighty, fun loving and, contrary to how they act, logical and able to judge things fairly. The books also said that Geminis and Pisces are not a good match. *sigh* Wonderful. Just what I needed to know. I prepared myself for the worst. 

Sunday came. I was sitting on the stone fence that surrounds the shrine (Yes, I live in a shrine. My younger brother is going to inherit it when (if) he grows up,) when I saw this exceedingly cute guy walking down the street toward me. He had longish fluffy auburn hair, and as he got closer, I could see his eyes were a beautiful sea green. *sigh* ^-^ 

His taste in cloths was something else though; let me tell you. Imagine if you will, red plaid (No, I kid you not.) slacks, a cream-colored shirt, and a yellow blazer. Geek clothing, but surprisingly enough, on him it looked good, you didn't even realize how bizarre his outfit was. Maybe it had something to do with how his eyes smiled 

Well, back to the story. Here I was, admiring this really cute guy, while waiting for my future fiancé to show. Imagine *my* surprise when he stopped at the gate and looked up at me. 

"Is this the Tenryu Shrine?" he asked me in a soft tenor voice. It made little shivers run up and down my spine. I could just listen to his voice forever *cough* um . . . Well, I nodded; it was all I could do. I was totally speechless. And a bit nervous too. What if he had seen me staring at him? How embarrassing. He smiled at me, ah, what a sweet smile he has; it made my heart melt. 

"Do you know the Kairyus?" he asked in his sweet tenor voice. I just stared at him. I was surprised he knew my family name. It must have shown, because he tilted his head a little and continued to watch me. "I was just wondering," he continued a moment later, after waiting for me to say something, "because you are sitting on their fence." 

I nodded again, like an idiot. I just could not get my tongue to work, a first for me. 

He sighed, probably he figured he was dealing with some sort of mute imbecile, and introduced himself. "I am Mouri Shin . . . " That was as far as he got, because at the mention of his name, I jerked back with a gasp of surprise, and naturally enough, fell backwards off the fence. This was clearly not going to be my day. 

A moment later I was laying on my back in one of my mother's flowerbeds. Staring at the fluffy white clouds high in the sky above me, crushed petunias beneath me and thanking my Gods that I hadn't been sitting over one of the rose beds, when Shin ran around the fence, all concerned, to see if I was okay. 

"Are you alright?" he asked, falling to his knees next to me, taking out a few more flowers. I turned my head slightly so I could see his face. 

"Yes," I whispered. Well, it was sort of true. Physically I was just fine. I just felt the complete fool, and who could blame me. I bit my bottom lip. "Y-you are Mouri Shin?" I questioned hesitantly in a small 'please-let-me-have-heard-wrong' voice. 

He gave me a puzzled look and nodded, sitting back on his heels. I shut my eyes and moaned, feeling warmth creeping up my cheeks. No matter how many times I imagined how we would meet, this scenario never ever entered my mind. How humiliating. I just wanted to crawl off and die. What a first meeting. 

He still hadn't figured out who I was. "Miss?" I hesitantly opened my eyes to look at him. He had stood up, and was holding out a hand, a slightly amused smile playing across his lips. "If you are fine, lets get you out of the flowers, hmmm?" 

Now that was a great idea. No matter how embarrassed I was, getting caught lying in the flowers by either of my parents would not be good. As it was, I was going to be in plenty of trouble as it was for crushing them in the first place. Mother does love her flowers. 

I reached up and he grabbed my hand in his. He helped me into a sitting position, and then used both hands to get me to my feet. His hands were strong and gentle. Once on my feet, I looked up into his humor filled eyes, and I knew I was lost. 

I guess he felt the same or something, for his eyes grew wide and serious, and his grip on my hands tightened suddenly. 

"May I ask you your name?" he asked in a low, urgent voice, like this was the most important question in the world. Maybe it was. 

"Kairyu Arial." 

Kismet. We were fated to be together. 

I was happy. My life was perfect. 

A couple weeks later I found out something that kind of surprised me. It turned out that Shin and my cousin knew each other. This was something I never would have guessed. 

Actually, I have three cousins, Akika, Seiji, and Mirin. My mother's brother's children. The one I am talking about is Seiji. He is one year older than me, almost to the exact date in fact, and one of the few boys in the family. When we were kids, we would hang around together, due to the fact we were so close in age. Well, to be totally honest, Mirin is a year younger than I, but we are too dissimilar to be good friends. 

I would never have guessed that Shin and Seiji even knew each other, let alone them being close friends. They don't live in the same district, which makes sense since Seiji and I live in the same district and I already mentioned that Shin comes from the other end of Japan, and until recently, they didn't go to the same school. Shin moved to Tokyo two years ago to go to school. They are even in different grades because Shin was born at the very end of the school year. 

But they are friends, good friends, and they have known each other for several years now. I still can't figure out, as I write this now, how I had never ever met Shin or their other friends before. Bad timing on everyone's part, I guess. 

Shin had told me he wanted me to meet some of his friends, five very important, close friends of his. No problem, I figured. It would be nice to meet some of Shin's friends. Besides, we were going to be married, I was going to have to meet his friends, and one of these days he is going to have to meet mine 

We went to a small park. Shin had told me that they usually met here and would meet us there. I have been to this park before; it was near Seiji's home. Near enough, in fact that we had played there occasionally as children. On a bench near the fountain were two Chinese teenagers, a guy and a girl. The guy was rather cubby but cute in a rough sort of way. The girl had shoulder length dark brown hair and an athletic build. I bet she was a killer on the volleyball court. Upon seeing them, Shin waved. 

"Shu, Shan Lai, how long have you been waiting?" 

Apparently, they were two of Shin's friends. 

"Not long," the guy, I guess he was Shu, responded as we walked toward them. "We just got here a couple of minutes ago." He gave me a searching look, and then smirked at Shin. 

"Sooo, this is your girl Arial, hmmmm? Cute . . . ow, hey!" The girl, Shan Lai had reached out and hit him on the shoulder. 

"I swear Shu, you have no manners." She turned to me and smiled. "Konnichi wa, I am Kuin Shan Lai, this mannerless slob is Rei Fuan Shu. Nice to meet you." 

I bowed down to them. "Hajimemashite. I am Kairyu Arial. It is a pleasure to meet any friends of Shin's." 

"She bowed," Shu murmured in amazement, showing that tact was not something he practiced often. "And she spoke so formally. I don't believe it, she is just like . . . " 

"Hey, Shin, Shu, Shan Lai!" We turned. Coming down the path toward us was two young men, around Shin and Shu's age. The first one, the one that called out to us, had longish shaggy black hair. His companion was a bit taller, they both seemed to be taller than Shin, and he had blue hair, cut short in the back with bangs that fell across his nose. "Sorry we are late." Shin smiled and shook his head. 

"Actually, you are on time for a change. Ryo, Touma," he glanced over to Shu and Shan Lai. "This is Kairyu Arial." 

They both smiled and nodded at me. "Nice to meet you," Ryo said. 

"Hello," Touma said softly, he seemed to me to be a bit on the shy side. 

I bowed down to them. "Hajimemashite. It is my pleasure to meet you." I responded. Well, that was four out of five. 

"Doesn't she kind of remind you of someone?" Shu asked, not letting up on his idea. "You know, how incredibly polite she is." 

"Shu!" Shin looked mildly offended at what his friend said. I don't blame him, Shin, that is, but as it was becoming apparent that this was how Shu normally acted, so I took no offence. 

"Don't mind him," Ryo told me, confirming my thought. "He doesn't mean to offend you." 

"Oh, I'm not." 

That was when I got a major type surprise. At least I wasn't the only one. 

"Forgive me for being late," a familiar voice came from behind me; I stiffened, a cold chill running down my spine. Nah, couldn't be. I had to be hearing things. "Classes ran longer than usual." 

"You are not that late," Shin told the young man. This had to be Shin's other friend he had told me about, but it sounded like... 

I turned around; I had to be wrong. But I wasn't. "Seiji?" 

He froze as he saw it was I standing next to Shin, a shocked expression flashing across his face. "Arial?" he asked in a choked voice. His eyes grew wide as he continued to stare at me. I didn't really care much, I am sure my expression was the same, and I know I was staring at him. 

"Wooo!" Shu leaned back on his hands and looked from Seiji to me. "They know each other." 

"Shin . . . " Seiji stuttered, "Shin . . . she isn't . . . you aren't . . . she can't . . . " It was the first time I had seen Seiji unable to say something. I wish I was in shape to appreciate it, but I couldn't even think properly. Seeing Seiji here was the last thing I had expected. 

"Seiji," Shin frowned at his friend, then looked down at me. "Arial, you know each other? Why didn't you say before?" 

"Probably they dated each other," Shu whispered loudly to Shan Lai. Her eyes grew wide as her face went pale. Seiji's eyes went flat, along with Shin's. Shu doesn't whisper very well. 

"I would never date Arial!" Seiji growled, highly offended. "The idea is unthinkable!" 

"Arial?" I turned to Shin. He very clearly wanted to know what was going on. 

"Yes, we know each other," I said in a low, numb voice. "It is only natural, after all," I turned and gave Shu a cold look, I hadn't appreciated that last remark of his at all. "Since our parents are siblings." 

"Cousins?!" Everyone looked at me to Seiji and back. 

"They do look a bit alike," Touma offered. "They have the same coloring." 

"Cousins?" Shin repeated softly to himself. Then he smiled. "Imagine that." 

And that was that. Seiji gave Shin his condolences for being stuck with me, I ignored it and decided to get even later, and we all went to the amusement park. 

None of them were able to figure out how come I had never run across them before either. Like I said before, bad timing all around. 

Not to long after, duty called. Some snippy, stupid punks broke open a spirit shield of some sort while performing some petty vandalism, thus freeing three demons unto the world and riding Tokyo of several worthless punks. It wasn't a very good trade. This was when I first encountered the Samurai Troopers. Nasty surprise that turned out to be. 

It didn't have a good start. I had to break off a date with Shin to go demon hunting, something I was loathed to do. It turned out, when I called Shin, that something had came up with him, and that he was getting ready to call me to cancel. Lucky! We made our apologies to each other, agreed to go out the next night, and hung up. I told my parents I was going to bed early, I had a headache to sleep off, and asked if they could not to disturb me. Then I slipped out the window. 

I changed into the White Armor of Wind oh, wait a moment. Did I forget to mention that the Golden Dragon Armor could be broken down into four different armors, each powered by one of the Gods? Oops, gomen. 

Well, it took me less than an hour to find the first demon. Being an Avatar also meant I was a priestess, so it wasn't hard for me to track it down. It was the most minor of the three, and was unable to hide its aura as well as the other two. It was also pretty easy to destroy. I had been taught special chants and prayers to use in such occasions. And if all else failed I could use the Red Flame Armor for purification by fire. Of course, I would only use that as a desperate measure. My control over fire isn't all that good. 

I was hunting down the second demon when there was an explosion down by the bay. I gave it a curious glance, it didn't concern me any, and I was busy. Then lightning struck out of the clear night's sky, and I felt the fading aura of a demon. Naturally I changed course. 

When I got to the bay area, I went straight to where I had felt the demon's aura. It had almost completely faded away. Someone had managed to destroy it. Who, and how? 

Now I was really curious, and Geminis are very, very curious by nature. What had happened here? I was walking around a darkened bit of pavement, where the lightning had struck, when I felt something. A faint scent of darkness overshadowed by the purity of a human soul. Before I could trace the source, my instincts screamed at me to jump. Someone was attacking me! A staff whistled underneath my feet, and I summoned a wind to carry me up to a nearby building. 

I twisted around right as I landed, and looked down at my attacker. A man in orange armor was staring up at me. In his hand was the staff. He did not look happy. 

I frowned and gave him a closer look. His armor. His armor was what I felt. Someone else besides me had mystical armor. Incredible. He said nothing as we stared at each other, and I couldn't make out his face. Like me, he was wearing a helmet, and the night's shadows prevented me from seeing through the face guards. 

I had just decided he wasn't the one who destroyed the demon. The energy reading from his armor was all wrong. At this point I was considering the idea of leaving the area, as I had no reason to fight him after all, when a flash of gold sped past my head from behind. 

I spun around. Above me on a taller building was *another* armored man. His armor, from what I could make out in the moonlight, was a dark blue. In his hands he held a golden bow. He released another arrow at me, and I jumped aside. Bad mistake. That arrow, like the first, was not aimed directly at me. I guess he took me moving as a hostile move, or maybe it was my bringing up my staff, for that was when the shower of arrows began. Things took a decidedly downward turn at this point. 

I barely escaped from them. I had no experience with fighting men in mystic armor, or of people who worked together. They apparently had. I finally had to resort to using my staff on them to get away from them. During our battle, I had made a nasty discovery. Their weapons were magical! The one in the orange armor collapsed a building on top of me! I flung him through a brick wall with a wind gust after I crawled out, and beat it while his friend checked to see if he was okay. 

All I wanted to do at this point was crawl off home and take a nice hot bath, and a half a bottle of painkillers. Even with my armor, I ached all over. Let me tell you, having a building fall on you is not fun. I wasn't so lucky. Guess who had friends? Yep, that's right. I was standing on a building in downtown Shinjuku, nice view from up here by the way, catching my breath when another armored man appeared. He was wearing green armor and was welding a no-dachi. 

This, I was not up for. Even if it wasn't magical, like the orange one's staff, facing a no-dachi with a staff in my shape wasn't my idea of a good time, or anyone's I would assume. Even if I armed my staff, it has retractable two-foot blades in each end, and was in peak shape it would still be touchy. It was high time to bail. 

Maybe he was in a bad mood, or possibly he had been chatting with his two friends, it could be both. I have no idea; I just did not like what happened next. 

I had begun to back up when he held up his sword (about this time I realized it was he who had destroyed the demon, as the energy signatures were the same) and he yelled to the sky. "RAI-KO-ZAN!" and lightning came down from the sky. 

I was lucky. I dodged at the last moment. Still . . . ouch! Being hit by lightning is about as fun as having a building fall on you. I would have been more than happy to have missed both. If it had hit me straight on, I am pretty sure it would have killed me. 

After being on the receiving side of such an attack, I just had to return the favor. Besides, I was getting pretty ticked off myself. I hadn't done anything to them, why the ~_hell_~ were they attacking me? "SHIROI-SEM-PU!" He wasn't prepared for it, and my attack hit him full force. He came to rest in the second building he flew through. 

Now, so far that night, I had fought one demon and three men in mystic armor. I have had arrows shot at me, been hit by lightning, and had a building fall on me. A pretty busy night by anyone's standard. Was that going to be it? Noooo, of course not! The night had been going really rotten so far, why should it improve any? 

I turned around, time to get going, fast, and there, standing at the edge of the building was a fourth armored man. I all but hung my head in chagrin; I couldn't believe it! How many were there? Did everyone in Tokyo own mystical armor and I just somehow missed it in passing or something? 

His armor was a light blue, and I got an impression of peace from him. Strange. He was holding a yari in one hand, and when I looked closer, I could see some nasty looking claws on his forearm. Brrr. 

He must have seen what I did to his friend because he attacked immediately. 

He took his yari into both of his hands and leveled it at me. By this time, I knew that meant only one thing. _Oh no,_ I moaned to myself, preparing myself instinctively for the upcoming attack. _Not again._ The spear point was glowing a soft light blue. 

"CHOR-YU-HA!" 

A massive wave of water rushed from the yari toward me. Or, at least where I should have been. I was not about to get hit by one of those attacks full force, no way. 

As I flew over him, I watched as he lowered his weapon and started to look around. He must have realized he missed hitting me. 

I landed six or so feet behind him. It was my idea to rush him from behind, knock him for a loop, and then beat it home. Despite the fact they had attacked me, for no reason whatsoever I must point out, I still did not want to hurt them. 

Unfortunately, this idea did not work out as I had planned. I must have made some sort of noise as I landed, for he rapidly spun around before I could act. The moon shown onto his face, banishing the shadows that had hidden it from me, and I looked into a pair of beautiful sea-green eyes. 

I froze. Shin. It was Shin. My Shin. My face was still in the shadows, and my helmet still on, but somehow, as I stared at him in disbelief, he recognized me. 

"Arial?" he whispered in shock. 

Naturally enough that was when the rest of the gang showed up, all out for blood. I guess they didn't take getting whomped on to well. 

On one of the surrounding buildings was the man in the green armor, supported by He-Who-Shot-Arrows. The one in the orange armor was on our building, and he was not happy with me at all. 

"YOU!" he yelled and rushed toward me, probably intending on ripping me apart with his bare hands. 

"SHU, NO!" Before I realized he had moved, Shin had lunged forward and had tackled hi . . . waitaminute, did he say . . . Shu? Had you ever experienced one of those sinking feelings down at the bottom of your stomach? Like a heavy weight? The kind that signaled that something was going on you really didn't want to know about? Enter sinking feeling. 

"SO . . . " A new voice. Enter bad feeling. I spun around. Standing at the opposite end of the building was yet another man in mystical armor, a red one this time. He was holding what looked to be some kind of boomerang made of two joined katanas above his head. 

"EN . . . " 

"RYO! NO . . . " Shin's voice sounded desperate. I stared at a man in red armor, surrounded by flames, and my eyes widened as I realized that this attack was going to be worse than all the others I had already been on the receiving end of. 

"ZAN!" 

Everything happened so slowly at this point. I couldn't move, my body was frozen. I watched, a bit bemusedly as a wave of fire came toward me. I heard Shin scream my name. The last thing I remembered was being engulfed in flames. Then everything went dark. 

I don't know how long I was unconscious. I awoke some time later to the sound of male voices raised in anger. The first thing I realized was that I wasn't in my armor anymore. The second was that I was still alive. My head was killing me, my whole body throbbed with pain, and listening to whomever it was yelling wasn't helping matters any. Being dead couldn't be near this painful. 

_Whoever, please, stop yelling. Please . . . _ I thought. I know I didn't speak. I was having a hard enough time forming coherent thoughts, let alone words. 

"Arial?" A voice above me. Shin, it was Shin's voice. His was one of those I had heard earlier. "Arial?" I felt something smooth, cool, and hard on my cheek. I struggled to open my eyes. 

Shin's face was above me, looking down at me in concern. He was wearing some sort of white and blue body armor. That was the second thing I noticed, right after discovering that my head was laying in his lap. The moon was high in the sky, and it seemed very bright to me. 

I blinked. _What happened?_ I thought fuzzily to myself. 

Shin answered my unspoken question. "You were hit by Ryo's attack." 

Ryo's attack? What was he talking about? I glanced around without moving. There were four forms standing near us, all in shadows. I tried to speak, I wanted to know what was going on, and I attempted to move my head; to get a better view of the other four men, but a sharp pain shot through my head. I moaned and squeezed my eyes shut. 

"Here Shin, let me see her." 

Seiji's voice. I tried to open my eyes, I had to see him, but the pain was too great. 

"Shhh . . . " I felt a feather soft touch at my temples. My body was enveloped in a cocoon of soothing warmth, like the sun on your face on a spring day. The pain faded away as though it never was. 

I opened my eyes. Shin was still gazing down at me. I turned my head. My cousin was kneeling on the ground next to us. He was wearing a green and white armor like Shin's. 

My eyes narrowed in speculation as I started to figure things out, now that I was able to concentrate on something besides how horrible I felt. I looked at the other three shadowy forms. Now that my head didn't ache as it had before, I was able to see them better. Touma, Ryo, and Shu. Each of them was wearing the base armor. They had attacked me?!? 

I turned back to Seiji, looking him in the face. He refused to meet my eyes. Instead, he turned away from me. 

"Seiji . . . " I whispered, and weakly reached out to him. He stood up, avoiding my outstretched hand, and walked away. He hadn't said a word. "Seiji?" 

_Why?_ I thought. _Seiji, why?_ Why had he walked away? 

"He tried to kill you." Shin whispered softly. I looked away from Seiji's receding back and up at Shin. Tears were in his eyes. _So did I._ He closed his eyes and a tear gently rolled down his cheek, following, I suddenly realized, well-worn tracks. 

I reached up and touched his face, fingers tracing the tear marks. There was a rustling noise around us, but I didn't know until later it was the others leaving. 

_Don't cry, please._ It hurt me to see him like this, and I felt tears welling up in my own eyes. In the mist of all of this, I had come to a startling realization. 

_Shin_? I thought at him. My feelings were all in a jumble, I had no idea how I felt as I willed him to hear me. So much had happened. 

He opened his eyes. "What?" he asked softly. My eyes opened wide. He had heard me! And I had heard him earlier, I was sure of it! 

I struggled to sit up, I had to face him, and not at this level, no matter how nice it was. After a moment of struggling, I was so weak; Shin helped me up so we were sitting facing one another. He had a puzzled look on his face. 

I bit my lip, and reached out to place a finger over his lips. Now he was looking really confused. Acid test time. 

_Shin, you can hear me, can't you._

The confused look dropped right off of his face, to be replaced by a look of total astonishment as he realized just what had happened. 

We could hear each other's thoughts. 

And that was how I first met the Samurai Troopers. 

Shin brought me home that night, and a couple of days later they found and destroyed the last demon. While I recovered, more at their insistence than the fact that I needed it, I have a remarkable recovery rate, they explained about their armor, how they got it and why. Interesting story. It explained a few things I had been curious about for a while. Wish I had been there to see it all, but my Gods hauled me out of Tokyo prior to Arago's attack. Then I told them about my armor, who I had received it from, and why. I don't think they quite believed the avatar bit, or about the Dragon Gods, but they haven't gone right out and said that I imagined things (despite what I am sure they were thinking). I believe they have decided to humor me about my Gods to avoid problems. *Giggle* Are they in for a surprise one of these days. 

Things have been going normally since then, all things considered. 

Well, now that I have covered the three most important events in my life, I'll be ending this entry. Besides, it is getting rather late . . . Gee wiz! It is after two in the morning! I am never going to get up. I have to pack still, and do a ton of chores . . . 

Oh, what am I babbling about now? Touma's uncle invited us to spend the week at his place in Nermia. We can afford to miss school, since *someone* accidentally blew up the chem lab, and caught the school on fire . . . Well anyways, the school is going to be closed for the next week for repairs, and we are going to Nermia. It should be interesting. I get to meet Touma's cousins, and I have heard some very interesting things about Nermia . . . 

Mata ne. 

Arial Kairyu   


(Note: Shiroi Sempu = white whirl wind) 


	3. Shu's Interlude

TROOPERS ½ INTERLUDE - SHU'S STORY   
by SHIN-CHAN   
  
  


We all boarded the train and made our way to our seats. I fell back into a window seat and propped my feet up on the armrest across from me. About two seconds later Shan Lai gave me an exasperated look, and Arial knocked my feet off. 

"Shu," Shan Lai admonished as she sat next to me. "You know better than that." 

I watched disgruntled as Arial sat down next to the window and Shin next to her. "I was just tryin' to get comfortable," I protested. "What's the harm in that?" 

I repositioned myself, tryin' to get comfortable again; train seats are just the same as plane seats, bus seats and movie theater seats. Not large enough, not soft enough, and no leg room. 

"None," Arial responded. "Just don't inconvenience others." Shan Lai nodded her agreement with that. I rolled my eyes as Shin laughed at my expression. 

"Girls," I muttered in disgust and turned to look out the window. They always stick together. Next to me I heard Shan Lai open her bag, and the rustle of paper. Probably reading the magazine she bought before we boarded. I could also hear the muted voices of Shin and Arial. She was telling him about a movie advertisement she had seen. Across the isle, in the next set of seats, Touma was telling Ryo a little bit about his cousin's dojo. 

Instead of joining in the conversations, I tuned everything out. Everything was so cozy, so normal these days. Nothing fun had happened for months now, like two of them. Sighing, I closed my eyes.   
  
* * * * * * *   


I guess for the most part, my life has been pretty normal. I come from a large Chinese family. Father, mother, two younger brothers, two younger sisters, and more aunts, uncles and cousins than you could shake a stick at. Just one big happy extended family. 

Well, on my father's side. My mother came to Japan from China as a bride, and has no other family here besides us, and she is happy that way. Seems that there was some trouble in her village when she decided to marry my father, and they ran away together. She hasn't had any contact with her people since, and from what she has told me, I gather it's a good thing too. Her people aren't the forgivin' type, if you know what I mean. 

I grew up in Yokohama's Chinatown district, doing all the normal stuff kids do; complaining about school, eating, playing sports, eating, playing video games; watch over the younger ones, eating, and learning kung fu. 

That all changed after I turned thirteen. This was when the fun stuff began. 

I was coming home from a late movie I had watched with some friends after school. We had separated and gone our separate ways several blocks ago, and I was only a couple blocks from home when a hand reached out of a dark alley and pulled me in. 

"Hey! Watch it!" I called out irritated. The hand released me and I stumbled forwards several steps. Around me came the sounds of laughter. 

I straightened up. Surrounding me in the alley was five teens my age, all in matching leather jackets. 

_Oh great!_ I thought to myself in disgust. _Mama is gonna kill me!_

Now, that thought isn't as strange as it first seems to be. The five guys obviously belonged to a gang, and they more than likely planned on robbing me blind, then beating the crap out of me. Mama highly disapproves of 'casual brawling' as she puts it, fights with no real purpose. If she finds out what I was planning on doing . . . ah well, what Mama doesn't know won't hurt me none. 

I placed my hands on my hips and gave them an annoyingly cocky grin. Gangs hate it when they think you are making fun of them and not taking them seriously. "You know," I told them. "This is one really bad idea on your part. Lets say I walk outta here with no problems, and you all go on your way in one piece." 

This little statement did what I thought it would do, it ticked them off way bad. 

"Ya little punk!" one of them snarled at me. He rushed at me with one fist cocked. 

I stepped aside at the last moment, grabbed his arm, and threw him into the wall. He made a satisfying crunching sound as he and the bricks made contact, and then crumpled to the ground. One idiot down; four ta go. 

When the other gang boys saw their friend go down they glanced at each other, at me, nodded and rushed me. All four of them. Maybe they thought a combined attack would work. 

I won't elaborate on what happened next, except to say it wasn't pretty. At least on their side. I was just fine. Only one of them touched me, a glancing blow across my cheek that wouldn't hardly bruise. 

After checking to make sure they were in moderately decent shape, I strutted out of the alley. I did make a mental note to notify the police when I got home, none of them were going to die, but a couple would be requiring medical attention to recover properly. 

A side note. Now you may be wondering how a boy my age was able to take out five opponents, four of them at once. It was easy. Not to be braggin' or nothing, but I am a master in kung fu. And then there is the hardly mentionable fact that I am incredibly strong. Not just strong for my age, as one might think, but _strong_. Way stronger than a grown man. So's my Mama, guess I inherited from her, as well as my exceptional fighting skills and reflexes. All which spelt bad news for anyone who messed with me. 

"Very impressive," a calm voice came from my left. I spun around. Standing underneath a streetlight was this youngish looking man. He had long white hair and was dressed up in some sort of monk's outfit. 

"You are a strong fighter," he continued. "Full of confidence, and compassion. Well suited for the task which lies ahead." 

I blinked in confusion and rapidly looked around. I was the only one in sight. 

"You talkin' to me?" 

His lips twitched momentarily, then he smiled. "Yes, Rei Fuan Shu. This," he reached into is robes and pulled something out, "is for you." 

Almost faster that I could follow; he threw something at me. Hard. 

"Hey!" I yelled and caught whatever it was before it hit me in the face. 

"You will know how to use it, and what to do when the time comes." 

"Huh? What are you talking about . . . Oh hell . . . " The monk began to fade, right before me! Honest! He was solid, then transparent, then . . . gone. 

I blinked a couple of times; then scratched my head. "Talk about weird. Wonder what that was all about?" Then I looked down at the object in my hand. 

I frowned to myself, and held up a small orange crystal ball between my thumb and index fingers. I peered closely at it, and for a moment I could have sworn I saw a word written in kanji in its heart. Gi = justice. 

Behind me, I heard a moan, which reminded me of what I should have been doing instead of talkin' to weird vanishing monks and looking at strange orange crystals, gettin' my butt home before curfew. 

I flipped the crystal into the air a couple of times, and then shoved it into my pocket. I had no clue as to what Phantom Monk was talkin' about, but it was a cool lookin' crystal. 

It wasn't until the next year that I found out anything new. That was when Arago and his Evil Empire attacked Tokyo, and I discovered that I was one of the saviors of the world. A Samurai Trooper. 

The war with the Evil Empire lasted several months, and consisted of two long drawn out battles. It was hectic. We nearly lost our first major battle with Arago himself. The only thing that saved us was Ryo gettin' a new armor, one that Arago knew nothing about. 

After we won that battle, we all had time for some well deserved R&R. Ryo was in a bad way from using the Kikoutei armor, and it took him over a week to recover. During this time Arago picked out one of his flunkies to find out about and to destroy the Kikoutei armor. This did not work as they expected. 

Saranbou suckered Ryo out of Nasutei's house and then kidnapped him. Then he proceeded to try to destroy the Kikoutei armor. We had found out what had happened and went to his aid. It turned out the Kikoutei armor is not all that easy to destroy. It draws energy from all five of the Samurai yoroi. We kinda learned that the hard way though. We sent Ryo all our energy once we clued in, and he whipped him in the Kikoutei armor. 

Afterwards, while we caught our breaths, I kinda got into a little argument with the others and I left them. During this time another of Arago's goons showed up. I barely made it back in time. With my help, we managed to defeat it. 

Now this was when the major problem of the evening, to my way of looking at it, occurred. At least from my point of view. You see, the docks were situated near Yokohama, and the guys all decided it would be a great idea to head to my family's restaurant to grab a bite to eat. I told them no way, bad idea, but they insisted. 

The reason it was a bad idea was that, up until earlier that week, I hadn't been in contact with my family since this whole mess started. Hadn't the time or the opportunity. And Mama was _not_ happy with me, especially in light of the fact I had refused to come home, that I was going to be stayin' with friends for a while. The Evil Empire was still out there, you know. I had to be ready to fight if necessary. 

So, Mama was none to happy with me. Showing up at the restaurant would be a bad idea on my part. 

Eventually they wore me down. Four against one, and all that fighting had made me hungry. We changed out of our armor and headed into Yokohama's Chinatown district. 

As we walked down the streets, I began to realize just how bad a mistake I had made. All the people on the streets were lookin' at me. The Rei Fuan clan is a well-known and prominent clan here. I'm probably related to half the people in Chinatown, and a good portion of those who lived here knew who I was on sight. 

"Uh, Shu?" Ryo glanced around nervously. "Are you aware that we are being stared at?" 

Shin shook his head and spoke up. He, as well as the others had also been looking around. "No Ryo. Not us." Shin turned to me with a question in his eyes. "Shu?" 

"I usually hang around here a lot, and I've been gone for awhile. No big deal." 

Yeah right. Rei Fuan Shu appears out of nowhere after a mysterious several weeks absence. It would be all over Chinatown before we reached the Rising Sun. 

"Shu?" 

"Yes Seiji?" 

"Are you sure they are not staring at you for some other reason." I turned to him. He had a slightly nervous look on his face. 

I gave him a wide-eyed look. "Aww Seiji, they wouldn't be staring because I'm hangin' with you guys." 

Seiji blinked in bemusement and then hung his head as what I said sank in. "That is not what I meant Shu. What kind of reputation do you have here?" 

"Seiji!" Shin exclaimed in protest. "What kind of thing is that to ask?" 

"Hey Shin," I placed my hand on his shoulder and gave Seiji a hard look. "My _reputation_ here is not at fault." 

"No," Ryo quickly put in, sensing a fight on the horizon. "Of course not." 

"Oh no," a new, female voice sang out. I froze. It could only be one person. "Rei Fuan's reputation in Chinatown in untouchable. No one could imagine _him_ doing _anything_ wrong." Uh oh. 

"Uh, hello," Seiji turned to the girl. Everyone was staring at her. 

"Hi," she responded, dark brown eyes narrowed in speculation. "You must be the new friends of Shu's that I have been hearing about. My name is Kuin Shan Lai." 

Oh, this was not good. 

"You have heard of us?" Touma seemed surprised. I wasn't. 

"Oh yes," she said solemnly. "Mama Rei Fuan was very vocal when she found out Shu wasn't coming home immediately, wanting to stay with friends in Tokyo instead." I winced. From how it sounded, Mama wasn't the only one who was upset. 

Shin shot me a surprised look, and then smiled slyly as the put two and two together. He is too quick to catch onto things at times. I glared at him. He just sent a smirking glance to Seiji, who immediately picked up on what Shin had figured out. Touma and Ryo were still in the dark. 

"Goodness Shu," Seiji smirked, innocent seeming eyes wide open. "Were are your manners?" 

"Yes," Shin was quick to agree, the traitor. "You should properly introduce us." 

I glared at the two of them; they smirked back. Okay . . . "Shan Lai, may I introduce you to my friends." One by one I pointed out each of them. "Sanada Ryo, Date Seiji, Hashiba Touma, and Mouri Shin." I took two steps and stood next to Shan Lai, hoping she wouldn't throw a fit over what I was about to do. Girls can be so touchy at times. "Guys, I'd like you to meet my girl, Shan Lai." 

It had gone over okay. Shan Lai didn't kill me, which was good. Once we returned home Shin told me he was glad to have meet her, and my family. Shin has the useful ability to calm frazzled parent's nerves. Neat trick, wish I knew it. Seiji said that Shan Lai was a sweet girl, and that he couldn't understand how she got hooked up with the likes of me. As for Ryo and Touma, the both liked her as well, after the shock wore off. 

Shin was the next to get a girl. Well actually, he always had a girl, but had never met her before. Arranged marriages, brrr. The idea gives me the chills. I'm glad Grandfather never arranged one for me. 

Shin met the little darling early in June, right after her fifteenth birthday, and introduced her to us several weeks later. Boy, first looks are sure deceptive. Kairyu Arial looked like a nice sweet girl, but . . . oh, surprise! 

You see, not long after we met her, and discovered the poor thing was Seiji's cousin, we discovered just how deceptive a sweet smile and innocent eyes could be. 

This is how it happened. On a nice summer night, some stupid gang boys were spray-paintin their names and various slogans on the walls of an old shrine. From what we worked out later, one of them entered the shrine and broke a large covered pottery jar. (We knew that because Seiji had been in there before. He really needs to find some other way to spend his free time . . . ) The jar contained three bound demons. Once freed of their prison, they promptly shredded the punk, and then moved on outside to finish off his friends. 

We saw the news report the next day, and Seiji said he had a pretty good idea as to what had happened. He quickly filled us in on all the nasty details (He reads up on this for _fun_, can you believe it?) and we all decided to go demon hunting that night. 

After sunset, we all put on our armor and went out looking for them. Seiji had dug up this old charm he had once got from the Tenryu Shrine that he claimed could track the demon, and it led us to the bay. 

Once there, Seiji managed it narrow the search area to a ten-block area. We split up into two groups, Shin and I went one way, Ryo, Seiji, and Touma went the other. 

Ryo was the one who found it first; his luck always seems to run that way. He immediately attacked, and promptly smashed through a wall of one of the warehouses. That also seems to happen to him a lot. Touma and Seiji were fighting it when Shin and I finally showed up. 

Shin naturally rushed of to see how Ryo was doing, and Touma yelled at me to help him distract it. He had a plan. So Touma and I managed to lure the demon into an open area, and them Seiji used his attack on it. Let me tell ya, charred demon and ozone don't mix. Ewww. 

Well, after that we separated again, Seiji was claimin' that the second demon was in the area. This time I was with Touma. We walked around for ten or so minutes. Nothing. I was ready to call it quits and join up with the others when I saw a shadow approaching on one of the warehouse walls. Touma and I looked at each other, and split up. He went to watch from the roofs, and I stayed on the ground. 

A moment later a figure came into view. A small and delicate form, dressed in some kind of ornate white armor with a flowing white silk cape and overcoat. Oookay. Whoever, whatever it was, it walked right past the alley I was hiding in, heading directly towards the docks. Curious, I followed. And got a surprise. 

After two blocks, he stopped exactly where Seiji had fried the demon earlier. 

_Touma, think this is the other demon?_

_Don't know. The other wasn't in armor._

_Well, I have an idea on how to find out._

_Be careful!_

_Hey, this is me we're talkin' about._

_ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . _

I hefted my staff. A quick sideways blow from behind should answer everything. I snuck up behind it, and swung. And missed! He jumped at the last moment! It had to be the demon. 

A wind suddenly picked up, and it seemed to lift the demon up to a nearby building. I stared up at him; he stared down at me. Stalemate. 

I smiled to myself as I watched Touma position himself behind the demon, lifting up his bow. And then, for some stupid reason, he fired a warning shot! The demon spun around and Touma shot off another arrow. 

This was when I realized I had messed up. As the second arrow approached, the demon quickly moved out of the way while summoning a glowing staff out of nowhere. As he lifted the staff, I caught a momentary glance of his face -not enough to really identify whom it was- just enough to tell it was human. Someone else had mystical armor besides us! 

We fought him anyway. He had shown up where demons were present, and he had acted very suspicious. In all likelihood we figured that he was controlling the demons. 

Unfortunately he got away. Talk about one slippery sucker. He managed to break away every time Touma and I tried to double-team him. Finally he ran into an abandoned warehouse, and I saw what I thought would be a way to end it. 

"GEN-TES-SAI!" 

I happily watched as the building collapsed upon itself with a giant roar and a cloud of dust. Lets see him get out of that! 

"SHU!" Touma landed next to me. "What are you doing!?" 

"It was condemned," I quickly pointed out, referring to the building. 

"But what about . . . " There was a creaking noise from the rubble, and Touma and I both stared at it. "What the . . . " 

Suddenly, and I'm not joking here, a miniature whirlwind roared out of the rubble, tossing timbers and concrete everywhere. In the center of the whirlwind, riding on the air currents, was the white warrior. He looked around and saw us staring at him. Before our eyes, the whirlwind dissipated and the white warrior landed on a large slab of concrete. He raised his staff and pointed it at us. I clenched my staff in readiness. 

"HAYAI-KAZE-FUKU!" 

The next thing I knew, something hit me in the chest, hard, and then I crashed into a brick wall. "SHU!" Touma spun around, and the white warrior vanished. 

"Why that little . . . " I growled as I creaked to my feet. "When I get my hands on him . . . " 

_What are you two doing over there!_

It was Ryo. Somebody must have gotten suspicious of what we were up to over here. 

_We were fighting someone wearing white armor. Mystic armor._ Touma quickly proceeded to tell them what had been happening. 

_You should have told us earlier._ Shin admonished sternly. I swear, sometimes I think he believes he is our den mother or something. _Any ideas as to where he came from?_

_No._ Touma looked around. _But keep your eyes open. I think he headed northwest._. 

_Downtown? Okay, lets go look for him._

"Shu, how are you feeling?" 

I glared at him. "Mad!" I slammed my fist in what remained of the wall. It collapsed, of course. "Come on Touma. I want him, bad." 

It wasn't long until he was spotted. 

_I see him!_ Seiji exclaimed. i>In the heart of Shinjuku! 

_Be careful,_ Shin called out. All four of us began to converge on Shinjuku. 

Barely a minute passed before we saw Seiji's attack, lighting up the night sky, from one of the taller buildings. The morning papers were going to have a field day with what was going on tonight. 

"I wonder if he got him," Touma murmured. A moment later we got our answer. 

"Holy sh . . . " I exclaimed as we watched Seiji slam into a building, come out the other side, and land in a second. What the hell kind of attacks does this person have? 

"Seiji!" Touma immediately went to his aid. 

"That's it!" I growled and clutched my staff. No more mister nice guy. "That guy is toast!" I started to leap from building to building. 

"CHOR-YU-HA!" 

_Careful Shin!_ I thought at him. _This guy is good!_ No response. And no answering attack. _Shin?_ Still nothing. What happened? _Shin!_ I raced towards the rooftop, expecting the worst. 

We all arrived at roughly the same time. 

"YOU!" I spat. The white warrior, staff in hand, was facing off against Shin! _Not Shin, you bastard! Not _~my~_ best friend!_ I thought and rushed towards him. 

"SHU, NO!" Shin rushed towards me and tackled me, knocking both of us to the ground. "Don't!" 

"Shin, what the . . . " 

SO-EN . . . " I smirked as the white warrior spun around. Apparently he hadn't seen Ryo arrive. 

"RYO!" Shin screamed. "NO . . . " 

"ZAN!" 

The white warrior didn't have a chance. The flames rushed towards him and surrounded him. 

"ARIAL!" I spun around. So did the others. Shin was on his hands and knees, staring at the wall of fire. 

"Shin?" I took a step towards him, and stopped. Tears were running down his face and dripping onto the roof. 

"Arial," he whispered in a broken voice. 

Huh? "Arial? Shin, what is the matter?" 

"LOOK!" I turned around. The flames from Ryo's attack were still burning brightly and expanding. Expanding? Waitaminute, there was a glow of some sort inside, a flash of pale blue. The glowing light got stronger, and the flames began to subside. 

"What is that in the center?" 

I peered closer. Seiji was right! There was something inside the blue light. A human form. The flames faded away completely, and then so did the blue light. Then we saw who it was. 

"Arial?" Shin whispered hopefully as he got to his feet. My blood had turned to ice as I finally figured out what he was talkin' about. It was Arial. She was floating, with a blue aura around her, unconscious. The aura faded, and she collapsed. Touma barely caught her before she hit the roof . . .   
  
* * * * * * *   


"_Attention please. We are now arriving at Nermia station. Please stay seated until the train comes to a full stop, and have a nice day_." 

I looked up. Nermia already? That was fast. 

Arial's face was plastered against the window like an eager child. "It looks normal enough." 

"Huh?" I had to have missed something. 

"Oh," Shan Lai waved her hand in the air. "While you were spacing it, Arial has been entertaining us with wild stories about how strange Nermia is. Unusual occurrences, sudden storms, animals acting like humans, demons, little things like that." 

"Someone has been watching too much late night TV if you ask me." Seiji smirked from across the isle. "You should be paying more attention to your homework instead late night monster features." 

"Really?" Arial purred. "Strange. _I_ haven't had any problems with any of _my_ assignments Seiji." She gave him an innocent look. "Can you say the same?" 

Seiji shot her a killing glare and threw himself back against his seat. Touma, who had been watching in silence, turned towards the window, a slight smile on his face. Ryo, Shin, and Shan Lai exchanged puzzled looks. I joined them. What was that all about? 

The train stopped and we began to gather our luggage. As we stepped onto the platform, I looked around, and then at Arial. _I wonder,_ I thought. _If any of those stories Arial heard are true? If so,_ I grinned, _we might be in for an interesting week._

THE END   


(Hayai Kaze Fuku = quick wind blow) 


End file.
